Upon the education of the people of this country the fate of this country depends. - Benjamin Disraeli 1804-1881

RFE/RL NEWSLINE

RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol 2, No. 233, Part II, 4 December 1998

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RFE/RL NEWSLINE Vol 2, No. 233, Part II, 4 December 1998
A daily report of developments in Eastern and
Southeastern Europe, Russia, the Caucasus and Central
Asia prepared by the staff of Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty.
This is Part II, a compilation of news concerning
Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Part I
covers Russia, Transcaucasia and Central Asia and is
distributed simultaneously as a second document. Back
issues of RFE/RL NewsLine and the OMRI Daily Digest are
online at RFE/RL's Web site:
http://www.rferl.org/newsline
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Headlines, Part II
* KWASNIEWSKI VETOES LAW ON ACCESS TO COMMUNIST SECRET
FILES
* NATO SAYS MILOSEVIC APPROVED RAPID REACTION FORCE
* ROMANIA ADMITS COMPANY OFFICIALS NEGOTIATED WITH IRAQ
End Note: THE STATE OF ECONOMIC EMERGENCY IN BELARUS
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EAST-CENTRAL EUROPE
FORMER UKRAINIAN PREMIER ARRESTED IN SWITZERLAND. Pavlo
Lazarenko was arrested in Switzerland on 3 December in
connection with a money-laundering investigation,
Western agencies reported. Lazarenko was prime minister
from 1996-1997 and is currently a parliamentary deputy
as well as leader of the opposition leftist Hromada
party. In Ukraine, Lazarenko was accused of diverting to
Switzerland some $20 million in state funds. Since
February, Ukraine has sent 20 requests for legal
assistance to Switzerland in the case. JM
UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT SENDS BACK 1999 DRAFT BUDGET FOR
REVISION. The Supreme Council on 3 December voted by 312
to 10 to postpone the first reading of the 1999 draft
budget until 9 December so that the Budget Committee can
revise the document. Many lawmakers echoed the
government's criticism that a budget with a zero deficit
is unrealistic (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 3 December 1998)
and questioned some revenue sources proposed by the
committee. In particular, the committee has proposed
raising extra money by taxing commercial banks, imposing
fees for using Ukraine's air space, and pressuring
enterprises to repay loans received under government
guarantees. Supreme Council Chairman Oleksandr Tkachenko
commented that Ukraine's economy is not yet ready for a
balanced budget, Interfax reported. JM
UKRAINIAN CABINET MOVES TO MEET MINERS' DEMANDS. In the
immediate wake of the 2 December coal mining strike (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 3 December 1998), the parliament has
passed a resolution ordering the government to speed up
repayment of wage arrears to miners, AP reported on 3
December. The government responded to miners' protests
by ordering mines to give the payment of wages a top
priority. It also granted mines tax breaks for 1999 and
included next year's expenditures for the coal sector on
the list of budget items that cannot be reduced. JM
LUKASHENKA SAYS MORE CABINET CHANGES IN OFFING.
Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has promised
"more far-reaching" changes in the government following
a reshuffle on 2 December (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 3
December 1998), Belarusian Television reported. The
government should be filled with new people "who will
introduce something new in our life and put our country,
like a spaceship, into a new orbit," he commented. He
promised that the government will focus on promoting
Belarusian exports and gaining new markets. And he did
not reject a journalist's suggestion that the Foreign
Ministry, the Foreign Trade Ministry, and the Ministry
for CIS Affairs may soon merge. Interfax reported that
Lukashenka's adviser for foreign affairs, Ural Latypau,
is likely to head the new consolidated ministry. JM
RUSSIA WANTS LONG-TERM COOPERATION WITH ESTONIA. Russian
Deputy Premier Valentina Matvienko told Estonian Premier
Mart Siimann on 3 December that Russia is ready for
long-term cooperation in regional, economic, and
minority issues, ETA and BNS reported. Matvienko is in
Tallinn for a two-day meeting of the Estonian-Russian
intergovernment commission, which was established 10
months ago and of which she and Siimann are co-chairs.
The 3 December session of the commission focused on
cooperation projects between border regions. Tallinn is
expected to push for a reduction of high Russian tariffs
on imports from Estonia. Two bilateral agreements are to
be signed on 4 December: one on recognizing academic
qualifications and the other on cooperation in
preserving cultural heritage. This is the first meeting
of the commission. Previous contacts within the
framework of the commission took place at the level of
expert. JC
LATVIA-RUSSIA INTERGOVERNMENT COMMISSION TO CONVENE
SOON? On the sidelines of the OSCE foreign ministers'
meeting in Oslo on 2 December, Valdis Birkavs and his
Russian counterpart, Igor Ivanov, agreed to prepare for
resuming the work of the Latvian-Russian intergovernment
commission and to organize the first session of that
body. Birkavs told BNS by telephone from the Norwegian
capital that the meeting took place in a "favorable,
constructive atmosphere." He added, however, that it
remains unclear when the commission will convene. The
two ministers discussed EU and NATO expansion as well as
several proposed bilateral agreements, including the
border treaty. And they also touched upon the situation
of the Russian-speaking population in Latvia, with
Ivanov reportedly commenting that "Latvia, no doubt, has
achieved progress." JC
VILNIUS COURT SENTENCES FORMER NKVD EMPLOYEES FOR
GENOCIDE. Three former employees of the NKVD have been
found guilty for the second time of killing a family of
four in 1945, including a pregnant woman, BNS and AP
reported on 3 December. Kiril Kurakin and two of his
former colleagues received sentences of six and three-
and-a-half years in prison, respectively. Under the
amnesty law, however, the sentences were reduced by one-
third. All three men are in their mid-seventies and are
physically handicapped. In 1997, the Vilnius District
Court had found them guilty of killing the four-member
family. Their case was then considered by the Appeals
Court and the Supreme Court before being returned to the
district court for a further ruling. The trial is the
first in Lithuania in which a conviction has been made
under the country's genocide law. JC
LITHUANIA DELIVERS FOOD AID TO KALININGRAD. The first
delivery of Lithuanian food aid reached Kaliningrad
Oblast on 3 December, AP reported, citing Interfax.
Earlier this fall, the exclave had declared an
"emergency situation," warning that food and fuel
supplies may soon run out. Lithuania delivered 100,000
cans of condensed milk, 100,000 cans of meat, and 40
tons of cheese, which are to be distributed among
hospitals and kindergartens. JC
POLISH FARMERS DEMAND PROTECTION FOR DOMESTIC
AGRICULTURE. Some 5,000 farmers held a rally at the
parliamentary building in Warsaw on 3 December,
demanding government subsidies for farms and increased
expenditures on agriculture in the 1999 budget, Polish
media reported. The demonstration was organized by the
radical Self-Defense Farmers' Trade Union on the eve of
talks between farmers and Agriculture Ministry
officials. Demonstrators called for the resignation of
Finance Minister Leszek Balcerowicz, who is widely
regarded as promoting reduced state subsidies for the
agricultural sector. JM
KWASNIEWSKI VETOES LAW ON ACCESS TO COMMUNIST SECRET
FILES. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski on 4
December vetoed a law on opening Communist-era secret
police files (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 September 1998),
AP reported. The law stipulates the creation of an
Institute of National Remembrance, which is to collect
files compiled between 1944 and 1989, make them
available to victims of the totalitarian regime, and
reveal the names of secret informers. Kwasniewski argues
that a court, not the institute, should decide who was a
victim. He also believes that all citizens, not only
victims, should have access to secret files. In order to
override Kwasniewski's veto, the parliament needs a
three-fifths majority. JM
POLISH COURT ISSUES ARREST WARRANT FOR STALINIST
PROSECUTOR. The District Military Court on 3 December
issued a warrant for the arrest of Helena Wolinska, a
Stalinist-era prosecutor now living in Great Britain,
PAP reported. Wolinska is accused of illegally ordering
the arrest of General August Fieldorf-Nil, who was a
leader of the Home Army, Poland's wartime non-communist
resistance movement. Fieldorf-Nil was sentenced to death
on fabricated evidence in 1952 and hanged one year
later. Wolinska was summoned to testify at the
investigation but failed to show up. The arrest warrant
allows the government to prepare an extradition order.
If found guilty, 79-year-old Wolinska could be sentenced
to up to 10 years in prison. She denies the charges
against her and argues she will not receive a fair trial
in Poland. JM
KLAUS CALLS FOR ROUNDTABLE ON ECONOMY. Former Premier
Vaclav Klaus issued an invitation to Premier Milos Zeman
and his predecessor, Josef Tosovsky, to join him in a
roundtable discussion on the country's worsening
economic situation, CTK reported on 3 December. The
invitation comes amid allegations that Klaus had not
wanted to continue as head of the government because of
an oncoming economic crisis (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 3
December 1998). Tosovsky served as the caretaker premier
after the Klaus government's fall and is currently the
governor of the Central Bank. Neither Zeman nor Tosovsky
has commented on the invitation. PB
PETITION SENT TO CZECH PREMIER ON PIG FARM AT
CONCENTRATION CAMP. Zeman received an open letter on 3
December signed by 100 Czechs and foreigners, including
Nazi-hunter Simon Wiesenthal, calling for the removal of
a pig farm from the former concentration camp at Lety,
CTK reported. The letter says that the pig farm is a
"desecration of a monument to the victims of the former
concentration camp, as well as an insult to humanity."
Lety began as a labor camp right before the
establishment of the Nazi Protectorate of Bohemia and
Moravia in 1939. From 1942 to 1945, it was used
exclusively as a concentration camp for Roma. PB
DZURINDA SAYS BENES DECREES NOT TO BE REVOKED. Slovak
Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda has dismissed opposition
fears that ethnic Hungarians in the coalition government
want to revoke the Benes decrees, CTK reported. Dzurinda
said the issue "cannot be reopened because it was deeply
anchored in our coalition agreements." The premier was
responding to opposition deputies who claim that the
Hungarian Coalition Party wants to redistribute land in
southern Slovakia that was confiscated after World War
II from Hungarians who were expelled under the Benes
decrees. Jan Cuper of the Movement for a Democratic
Slovakia, said "this is one of the ways in which
landwill get into hands of people primarily of
Hungarian nationality." PB
HUNGARY WANTS MORE TIME BEFORE DECIDING ON DAM. The
daily "Magyar Hirlap" reports that the Hungarian
government will ask the International Court of Justice
in The Hague for another six months to make a decision
on the controversial Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric
project. Slovakia sent the dispute back to The Hague
after failing to agree with Budapest on an
interpretation of the court's first decision, which was
taken in September 1997. The case was originally brought
to the court in 1994, five years after Hungary withdrew
from the project. PB
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
NATO SAYS MILOSEVIC APPROVED RAPID REACTION FORCE. An
unnamed NATO source told Reuters in Brussels on 3
December that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic
"fully agreed to the extraction force and its
activities. This can be confirmed. There is no
misunderstanding on this." Several Serbian officials
have said recently that Belgrade regards as a threat the
presence of a 1,700-strong NATO force in Macedonia to
rescue endangered civilian monitors in Kosova. Serbian
officials have added that they will view as "aggression"
any incursion by the force into Serbian territory (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 30 November 1998). Observers
suggested that Belgrade has been using tough language
over Kosova in recent weeks in order to press U.S. envoy
Chris Hill for more concessions in his draft plan for an
interim settlement in Kosova. PM
HILL OFFERS BELGRADE NEW PLAN. In Belgrade on 3
December, Hill gave Serbian President Milan Milutinovic
a copy of a "new version" of his plan for a settlement
in Kosova, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported.
Neither U.S. nor Serbian officials provided any details
of the proposal. In response to reporters' questions as
to whether recent State Department statements that
Milosevic is "the problem" have hampered his negotiating
efforts, Hill said that he works "with the relevant
people in this process and...will continue to do so"
(see "RFE/RL Balkan Report, 3 December 1998). Hill added
that top Belgrade leaders "have never refused to meet
with me." Hill is U.S. ambassador to Macedonia and was a
member of special envoy Richard Holbrooke's team that
negotiated the Dayton agreement. Western and regional
press reports earlier this year suggested that he became
Washington's chief diplomat for Kosova because Milosevic
refused to deal with special envoy Robert Gelbard. PM
SESELJ, PARLIAMENT BLAST WASHINGTON. In response to the
State Department statements, Serbian Prime Minister
Vojislav Seselj said in Belgrade on 3 December that "the
Americans are brutally violating all norms of
international public law. In a criminal way they are
destroying entire peoples and states and in a most
flagrant way they are interfering in the internal
affairs of others." The Yugoslav federal parliament, for
its part, passed a resolution giving "full support" to
Milosevic "in his efforts to defend vital national and
state interests." The text "rejected and denounced all
pressure, threats, and gross interference [by
Washington] in the internal matters of the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia." The resolution charged that the
U.S. "supports terrorism" in Kosova, "misleads world
opinion," and "seeks to remove" the province from
Serbia. PM
OSCE GETS STRONG SUPPORT FOR MONITORING MISSION. U.S.
envoy William Walker, who heads the OSCE's 2,000-strong
civilian verification mission to Kosova, told an OSCE
conference in Oslo on 3 December that 34 member states
have offered to supply personnel for the unarmed
contingent (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 3 December 1998). He
said that largest groups will come from Italy (203),
Germany (187), the U.K. (158), the U.S. (143), and
Russia (121). The delegates approved a declaration
expressing hope that the presence of the mission will
contribute toward reaching a political settlement in the
Serbian province. PM
KILLINGS RAISE TENSIONS IN KOSOVA. Yugoslav troops have
killed eight persons who were trying to illegally cross
the border between Kosova and Albania, RFE/RL's South
Slavic Service reported on 3 December. In Prishtina, the
Kosova Information Center news agency, which is close to
shadow-state President Ibrahim Rugova, reported that
Serbian security forces gunned down a guerrilla leader,
a journalist, and a student leader in the center of the
capital. Adem Demaci, who is the political spokesman for
the Kosova Liberation Army, called the three killings "a
classic assassination." Police refused to give Reuters
any information on the shootings. The news agency said
that a "random roadside killing" of an Albanian on the
Prishtina-Peja road in central Kosova and the wounding
of a Serb nearby later that day have created a "climate
of fear" among Serbs and Kosovars alike. PM
WESTENDORP SETS GOALS FOR BOSNIA. A spokesman for the
international community's Carlos Westendorp said in
Sarajevo on 3 December that the high representative's
goals for 1999 are "to make peace self-sustaining and to
prepare the country to live without foreign aid," AP
reported. Westendorp believes, moreover, that "any exit
strategy of the international community...must be
accompanied by an entry strategy for Bosnia-Herzegovina
into European institutions," such as the EU and Council
of Europe. A major international meeting on Bosnia's
future is slated for 10 December in Madrid. Meanwhile,
Westendorp sent a message to Dragan Kalinic, who is the
Republika Srpska's hard-line parliamentary leader, to
return to President Nikola Poplasen the mandate he gave
Kalinic to form a government. Westendorp argued that
Kalinic will not be able to put together a legislative
majority and that current Prime Minister Milorad Dodik
should have the opportunity to do so. PM
CONCERN GROWS OVER HAJDARI CASE. Prosecutor-General
Arben Rakipi told the "Albanian Daily News" of 4
December that several witnesses in the murder case of
controversial Democratic Party legislator Azem Hajdari
refuse to cooperate with the investigators. He said that
most of these witnesses are senior officials of
Hajdari's party, but he gave no names. Rakipi argued
that the officials are "obstructing the law for
political reasons." He added that "few people [seem to
feel] obliged to find out the truth but I hope that fear
is not what is [keeping] them from testifying."
Meanwhile, a Norwegian prosecutor arrived in Tirana on 2
December to assist in the investigation. And a recently
established student group on 3 December threatened to
hold a nationwide strike unless the investigation yields
results by 8 December, the anniversary of the 1990
student protests that toppled communism. Hajdari was a
leader of those protests. FS
CONTROVERSY OVER ALBANIAN PARLIAMENTARY BOYCOTT.
Speaking to journalists in Tirana on 2 December,
representatives of two small parties belonging to the
Democratic-led Union for Democracy coalition urged the
coalition to end its intermittent parliamentary boycott.
Teodor Laco from the Liberal Union and Remzi Ndreu from
the Democratic Union stressed that the coalition needs a
new strategy and that parliamentary participation would
allow it to mount a more effective opposition, "Albanian
Daily News" reported on 4 December. Laco argued that the
boycott "works to the [Socialists'] advantage." He added
that the new constitution allows the opposition to
exercise political influence through the parliamentary
process. Democratic Party Secretary-General Ritvan Bode,
however, rejected the appeal, saying that "we are facing
shocking events that do not lead toward rapprochement."
He referred to Hajdari's killing and the recent
imprisonment of several Democrats over their alleged
role in crushing the 1997 unrest. FS
ROMANIA ADMITS COMPANY OFFICIALS NEGOTIATED WITH IRAQ.
The Defense Ministry on 3 December released details of
the extent of its military cooperation with Iraq, AP
reported. In a statement, the ministry said that
officials from the companies Romtechnica and Giara
traveled to Iraq in 1994 to discuss supplying raw
materials and "subassemblies." Iraq also requested
Romanian aid in the research, design, and production of
parts for short-range missiles. The statement said there
was an initial delivery to Iraq but gave no details of
what was delivered. Later, a third company, Aerofina,
signed a contract to deliver missile parts through a
Jordanian company. The Defense Ministry says relations
were broken off in December 1996. One month later,
Defense Ministry State Secretary General Florentin Popa
was sacked, along with the directors of Giara and
Aerofina. (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 1 December 1998.) PB
ROMANIAN, TURKISH PRESIDENTS MEET. Romanian President
Emil Constantinescu and his Turkish counterpart,
Suleyman Demirel, discussed bilateral relations and
energy transport policy at a meeting in Bucharest on 3
December, Rompres reported. Constantinescu said good
political relations were the basis for improved economic
cooperation. He noted that Bucharest and Ankara's energy
transport projects are not competing but are
complementary, adding that Romania is helping to build
an oil refinery in Turkey. Demirel, making his third
trip to Romania in the last two years, praised the
countries' strong ties and said he expects their trade
turnover to soon total $1 billion annually. He added
that Ankara strongly supports Romania's desire to join
NATO. PB
OSCE CALLS FOR INTENSIFIED TALKS ON TRANSDNIESTER. OSCE
foreign ministers, meeting in Oslo on 3 December, called
for reinvigorated talks on Moldova's Transdniester
region, an RFE/RL correspondent reported. They said
negotiations had "languished" but should be stepped up.
They added that talks should seek to consolidate the
independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of
Moldova while reaching an understanding on the status of
the breakaway Transdniester region. The OSCE also
expressed concern at the lack of progress on the
withdrawal of Russian troops from the Transdniester. PB
BULGARIAN POLICE CHIEF APPOINTED. Bulgarian President
Petar Stoyanov issued a decree on 3 December appointing
Vasil Vasilev as director of the nation's police,
Bulgarian Radio reported. He replaces Colonel Slavcho
Bosilkov, who was recently sacked along with Interior
Ministry Secretary Nikolay Radulov. PB
END NOTE
THE STATE OF ECONOMIC EMERGENCY IN BELARUS
by Jan Maksymiuk
It seems as if suddenly things have started going
wrong for Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka .
At least, that is the impression one gains from
Belarusian official propaganda. As recently as in
August, the Statistics Ministry reported a remarkable 12
percent growth in the country's GDP. When the financial
crisis hit Russia that month, Lukashenka boasted that
Belarus was the only oasis of economic stability on
post-Soviet territory.
In September, Lukashenka vowed to organize
"centralized food supplies" to stave off famine in
Russia and even offered to act as economic adviser to
Russian President Boris Yeltsin. One month later, in
October, with Belarus facing serious food shortages,
Lukashenka's self-assuredness began to subside. And by
November, Lukashenka himself began needing advice. "Why
are our people becoming poorer and poorer every month
while we are so dynamically developing industry and
agriculture?" he asked his ministers at a televised
cabinet meeting. None was able to provide an answer.
Signs of a looming calamity in Belarus's Soviet-
style economy began to appear in early September, when
Belarusians launched a run on shops in a bid to use up
their meager savings before they became completely
worthless. Although the National Bank maintained the
official dollar exchange rate below 50,000 Belarusian
rubles, the street exchange rate plummeted to 120,000.
And in noncash transactions between Russian and
Belarusian companies, one dollar was equal to 220,000
Belarusian rubles. By the beginning of December, those
figures had nearly doubled.
Owing to the de facto insolvency of Russia, which
accounted for 70 percent of Belarusian exports before
the current economic crisis, Belarusian enterprises have
been forced to reduce output and/or hoard products in
storehouses. Experts estimate that Belarus's industrial
production will continue to slump by up to 12 percent
monthly at least for the next four months. Every month,
Belarusian revenues fall short by some $100 million
because of reduced exports to Russia.
The acute shortage of foodstuffs, which has led to
rationing in many regions, may be attributed to several
factors. First, Belarus's grain harvest this year was
down by 1 million tons, compared with 1997. Second,
state-controlled food prices are too low to make food
production profitable. Third, Belarus has to supply food
to Russia to repay its $250 million gas debt. And
fourth, it cannot be ruled out that, owing to much lower
food prices in Belarus, some goods are smuggled into
Russia and Ukraine, particularly since there are no
customs controls on the border with those countries.
To deal with the crisis, the Belarusian president
in November set up a "national headquarters"--an
emergency task force headed by his administration chief,
Mikhail Myasnikovich. In this way, Lukashenka has
prevented the cabinet from managing the economy. Prime
Minister Syarhey Linh has been subordinated to
Myasnikovich and charged with the task of normalizing
food provisions in the Minsk region.
None of the administrative measures taken by the
authorities to improve food supplies--including the
introduction of police and customs patrols on the
Belarusian-Russian border--has proven effective,
however. In November, the government was forced to
increase food prices by an average of 30-40 percent. The
price of vodka--which in the former Soviet Union
continues to affect political and social trends among
the electorate--went up by 75 percent in one fell swoop.
Lukashenka publicly blamed the prime minister for that
hike, accusing him of "hating the people." The president
did not, however, reduce the price.
In addition to price increases, the government has
made some other moves toward liberalizing financial
policies. National Bank Chairman Pyotr Prakapovich once
again pledged to introduce a single exchange rate (to
replace the current four) and limited the devaluation
rate of the Belarusian ruble to 1,500 rubles per
interbank currency-exchange session. Commercial banks
have been allowed to sell and buy hard currency at rates
exceeding the official one by up to 50 percent. And
according to some reports, the National Bank promised
the IMF in mid-November to considerably limit money
emissions, until now the most popular method of
stimulating production in Belarus. In other words,
Belarus has tentatively resorted to some market economy
tools.
However, it is too early to say that Belarus has
moved over to such an economy. Rather, it is the state
of economic emergency and the urgent need to obtain a
$100 million loan from the IMF that has prompted the
Belarusian leadership to take such unorthodox (by
Belarusian standards) and unpopular measures. At the
same time, facing the threat of trade union mass
protests, Lukashenka vowed to control prices after the
November hike and not to increase them by more than 3-4
percent a month. And in a successful bid to avert a
trade union rally on 2 December, the "national
headquarters" pledged to increase wages. Since Belarus
does not have large hard-currency revenues, that pledge
can only mean printing more inflationary money.
This week, the authorities were able to make the
trade unions back down and thereby extinguish the
incipient social unrest. But it is hardly conceivable
that the government will be able to substantially
increase the living standards of Belarusian workers,
whose average monthly wage is equal to some $35. It is
only a matter of time until workers start making demands
again. The authorities, for their part, are finding it
increasingly difficult to meet such demands as they
continue to shy away from radically reforming Belarus's
ineffectual and antiquated economy.
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